Yarn guide



P 28, 1954 P. J. SCHOENSTER YARN GUIDE Filed Nov. 30, 1950 FIG.

Wig; ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 28, 1954 YARN GUIDE Peter J. Schoenster, Teaneck, N. J., assignor to Alfred Hofmann & 00., West New York, N. .L,

a corporation Application November 30, 1950, Serial No. 198,298

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to yarn guides for flat knitting machines.

It has been proposed to provide for use in flat knitting machines, warp yarn guides having a yarn delivery end and yarn receiving end remotely located from the delivery end. In such guides, the channels extending from the opposite ends thereof, areclosed at the receiving ends in order to prevent the yarns from leaving the channels during certain phases of the knitting cycles where the guide bars on which the yarn guides are mounted, move outwardly as a part of their to and fro movement. Thus, the yarns are threaded into the channels and are restrained against outward movement therefrom by means of longitudinally extending wires or rods located at the receiving ends of the channels.

Such known yarn guides entail technical difliculties in their fabrication, their attachment to the guide bars of the knitting machines and'in the utility thereof.

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide improved yarn guides for flat knitting machines, which by reason of their structure and location of elements thereof, provide a simplified construction having distinct advantages in use.

Another object of this invention is to provide yarn guide means of the character described, for attachment to the movable guide bars of a flat knitting machine, which includes means for aligning a plurality of yarns in side by side relation with means for delivering the yarns to knitting elements of the machine, the aligning means taking the form of outwardly open channels which are so located relative to the yarn delivery means as to retain the yarns in their respective channels in any position of the guide bars.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved yarn guide means which includes a block having a plurality of elements in closely spaced, parallel relation, each element being formed with yarn delivery means at one end thereof and a plurality of closely spaced, parallel projecting means forming successive open yarn receiving and guiding channels, each channel being aligned with a yarn delivery portion, the spacing between each channel and its delivery portion being such that a yarn disposed in such channel and extending to the delivery portion, will remain in the channel irrespective of the amount of displacement between the yarn and the channel during various motions of the knitting cycles.

Still another object of this invention is to provide improved yarn guide means which includes a block mounted on a guide bar and having a plurality of closely spaced elements mounted therein in parallel relation, each element including a yarn delivery portion and a projection spaced therefrom, successive pairs of projections forming open yarn receiving means for aligning the yarns with respective yarn delivery portions, the spacing between the projections and the delivery portions being such that yarns will remain within the yarn receiving means in any position of the guide bar.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and in part hereinafter pointed out.

The invention accordingly consists in the combinations of elements and arrangement of .parts which will be exemplified in the constructions hereinafter described, and of which the scope of the invention will be indicated in the following claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a partial side elevational view of a warp yarn guide embodying the invention, mount- ,ed on a guide bar;

Fig. 2 is a sectional of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of an element of the guide means shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a modified form of the guide means embodying the invention; and

Fig. 6 is a side elevational view of a modified form of element which may be used in lieu of elements shown in Figs. 1 and 5.

Referring in detail to the drawing, and particularly to Fig. 1, l8 designates a yarn guide bar which is attached to a guide bar holder, not shown, of a flat knitting machine. Mounted along the longitudinal extent of bar It in side by side relation, are a plurality of similar yarn guide units ii, embodying the invention. Each guide unit ll comprises a substantially rectangular block it of cast metal alloy having a flat outer face it, a lower horizontal edge It and an opening it at the upper portion thereof, for receiving a screw it which secures the block to the bar I0.

Mounted in each block l2 are a plurality of similar metal elements H, which are arranged in closely spaced, parallel relation. Each element ll, which may be formed of metal wire stock, is flattened and formed at its lower end with a yarn delivery eye it; The shank IQ of the element I! is bent intermediate the ends thereof to form a narrow doubled projection or hump 2t. Such projection extends substantially at right angles view taken on the line 2-2 to the axis of shank l9 and provides a yarn aligning element, as hereinafter described.

The elements I! may be suitably spaced and embedded in the block [2 as the same is cast, so that the lower ends of' shanks I9 extend downwardly from the block edge I4 and the eyes l8 thereof are horizontally aligned. The upper ends of shanks J9 areso disposed within the block 12 as to have the projections 21] located immediately below the block edge l4 and extending outwardly of the block face l3. The projections 20 are in horizontal alignment with each other.

It will be apparent that each successive pair of projections 20 form an outwardly open channel adapted to receive therein a portion of a single yarn Y, the upper portion of which is supplied from a warp, not shown. The lower portion Y of each yarn is threaded through an eye 18 of a corresponding element [1. Thus, the yarn vportion Y is directly aligned with eye [8 from the projection 20 and is retained in such alignment at all times. The aligned yarn portions Y are delivered from the eyes 18. to the knitting elements of the machine with which guide bar is associated.

The guide bar It! is adapted to be moved longitudinally of the machine, as well as in transverse directions. .Such movements are dictated by the knitting pattern during various motions of the knitting cycles, in a manner well known in the art.

It will be apparent from av consideration of Fig. 1, that the yarn portions Y will maintain their alignment with their respective yarn delivering eyes 18 within the .critical area required ,for'the accurate manipulation of the yarns during the knitting cycles. The projections 20 will maintain such yarn alignment in any of the longitudinal positions of the guide bar In, wherein the yarns Y may have an inclination to the left or the right, above projections 20, as indicated in the figure. The spacing between successive projections 20 is such as to form yarn guide channels slightly greater than the diameter of the yarn disposed therein.

It is also understood that-the yarn portions Y retain their aligned positions within the guide channels, when the guide bar is actuated to cause the same to have a transverse or to and fro movement. In the case of movement of the bar to the left, looking at Fig. 2, the yarns will approach the guide bar and stay within the guide channels. Whenthe guide bar moves toth-e right, looking at Fig. 2, the yarns will show a progressive increasein. displacement relative to the guide bar, in successive portions thereof iocated at successively greater distances from eye I8. However, such displacement is relatively small at the lower portions of the yarns. Thus, the projections 28 are located at points spaced from the eyes l8where the yarn displacement is less than the outward extent of the projections. By locating the projections 20 adjacent the eyes [8, as

at the block edge M, the projections may be relatively short.

With open channel yarn receiving means as defined by the projections 20, yarns Y may be quickly drawn. from their warps, disposed within the receiving means and threaded through the delivery means at eyes l8, in a very short time.

Despite the complexity of :the various movements of the guide bar during the knitting cycles in accordance with the knitting pattern, the feeding movement of the individual yarns Y to the knitting elements will be such as to eliminate fabric defects such as pinholes or the like, which are caused by excessive angular shift of the yarns in a critical area at their delivery points.

As shown in Fig. 5, elements [1, also formed from flattened wire stock, may include eyes [8' .at the lower ends of shank portions 19 and single projections 20 bent from the upper ends at right angles thereto. The elements ll are spaced and embedded in block I2 with the shank portions I9 extending downwardly from block edge l4. The projections 20 extend outwardly of block face 13 and are located slightly above edge It. The projectionsll! must have a length in accordance with their spacing from eyes l8 to allow the yarn portions Y to remain within the channels formed by the projections when the bar I0 is moved to the right, looking at Fig. 2.

As shown in Fig. 6, shanks lea formed with eyes 1-8 at theirlower ends may-be separate from projections Ella. Each set lid of shanks and projections must be .suitably related and spaced for embedding in block IE, to form successive open channels which are aligned with successive yarn. delivering eyes. Here, also, the spacing between each eye liia' and its projection 26a must be such that the yarns will stay within the yarn receiving channels upon movement of the guide bar H] to the right, looking at Fig. 2. Furthermore, each projection 23a may be so positioned as to be in slightly offset relation to an eye !8, thereby allowing the projections to be located in closer relation to the yarn delivering eyes l8.

It will thus be seen that there is provided yarn guide means in which the several objects of the invention are attained and which is well adaptedto meet conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might be made of the above described invention, and as various changes might be made in the embodiments above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawing, is: to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent:

1. A yarn guide for attachment to the movable guide bar of a flat knitting machine, comprising a member adapted to be. mounted on said guide bar, means including a plurality of closely spaced, elongated parallel members extending downwardly from the lower edge of said member tending members, will stay within said channels upon movement of said guide bar in any direction.

2. A yarn guide for attachment to the movable guide bar of a flat knitting machine, comprising a member having a flat outer face and adapted to be mounted on said guide bar, a plurality of similar elements mounted closely spaced, parallel relation on said member, each of said elements including an elongated portion extending below the lower edge of said member and being formed with a yarn receiving opening at the lower end thereof and a narrow portion projecting forwardly of and at right angles to the outer face of said member, said projecting portions being located adjacent the lower edge of said member and forming a plurality of outwardly open guide channels.

3. A yarn guide for attachment to the guide bar of a flat knitting machine comprising a supporting member, a plurality of similar wire elements mounted on said member in closely spaced, parallel relation, each of said elements comprising a shank portion formed with an eye at one end thereof and including a guide forming portion extending substantially at right angles to the axis of said shank portion, said guide forming portion being located adjacent the lower edge of said supporting member.

4. A yarn guide as in claim 3, wherein said guide forming portion is disposed at the other end of said shank portion.

5. A yarn guide as in claim 3, wherein said guide forming portion is disposed intermediate the opposite ends of said shank portion.

6. A yarn guide for attachment to the guide bar of a fiat knitting machine, comprising a member, a plurality of similar elements mounted on 6 said member in closely spaced, parallel relation, each of said elements being formed of an integral elongated member having an eye at one end thereof and bent intermediate the ends thereof to form an outwardly projecting guide forming means extending substantially at right angles to the axis of said elongated member, said elements being disposed with the eyes thereof extending below the lower edge of said first mentioned member and with the guide forming means thereof disposed adjacent the lower edge of said first mentioned member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,418,445 Amidon Apr. 8, 1947 2,428,443 Broberg Oct. 7, 1947 2,429,231 Lambach Oct. 21, 1947 2,476,344 Young July 19, 1949 2,480,175 Young Aug. 30, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 1,864 Great Britain of 1890 223,217 Germany June 16, 1910 

